A slow, cozy journey to dreamland where your child says goodnight to the whole wide world.
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Help topic - bedtime fears
Personalized books for a child scared of the dark
For the open door, the hall light, and the third glass of water.
Being frightened of the dark is not a problem to be corrected - it arrives in most children somewhere around three, when their imagination gets good enough to fill a dark room, and it usually leaves on its own. What helps in the meantime is not reassurance that there is nothing there, which a child hears as an argument they are losing. What helps is a version of the dark that has something friendly in it, met on an ordinary evening with the lights still on, starring a child who looks like them.
What to look for
Do not argue with the fear
A story does not have to prove the room is safe. It just has to put something gentle in it.
Read it before lights out
While the room is still bright. A book produced in the middle of a frightened night reads as a tactic.
Usually 3 to 6
It tends to arrive with a bigger imagination and leave on its own. This is a companion, not a cure.
4 stories in bedtime fears
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The moment your child falls asleep, a whole world of dreams swings open.
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When the lights go out, your child meets a friendly little glow that turns shadows into wonders.
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When the night light flickers out, your child discovers the dark is not empty at all - it is full of small, glowing, friendly things.
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Free preview before you pay Reading level set to their age during setup Ships straight to their door
Common questions
How do I help my child stop being afraid of the dark?
Most children grow out of it. Until then the things that reliably help are a predictable routine, a dim light if they want one, and not treating the fear as something to be talked out of. A story gives them a friendlier picture of the dark to hold onto.
Is being scared of the dark normal?
Very - it usually appears around three and fades over the following couple of years. If it is getting worse rather than better, or it is affecting their sleep or their days, that is worth a conversation with your GP or paediatrician.
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Make them the hero of the story.
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